The present invention relates generally to textile fabric finishing apparatus and, more particularly, to apparatus for the surface treatment of pile and plush fabrics, e.g., fabric shearing and tigering machines.
In the manufacture of pile and other plush-type textile fabrics, it is common to perform various finishing operations to enhance the appearance or hand of the pile or plush surface. For example, shearing machines are often employed to sever the tips of pile loops on a pile fabric to produce a velour-type plush surface effect. Napping and tigering machines may be employed as a subsequent processing step to brush the plush fabric surface to liberate and remove excess loose fibers and thereby improve the surface appearance and feel.
One of the difficulties in performing such finishing operations on pile and plush fabrics in a commercial production setting is that the resultant surface effect on the fabric and the affected fabric characteristics, e.g., surface appearance, hand, drapeability, fabric weight, etc., cannot necessarily be predicted accurately in advance simply by selection of the variable operating parameters and settings of the fabric treating machine. Accordingly, the control and regulation of fabric shearing, tigering and other surface treatment operations on pile and plush fabrics is to at least some extent an art based in part on experience and experimentation. Disadvantageously, in the commercial production of fabric, trial and error experimentation in the set-up of such finishing machines leads to fabric waste and decreased production efficiency and, in turn, once a commercial operation is underway, militates against frequent changes in machine production settings which might otherwise be desirable to accomplish a variety of fabric effects.